| Publication |
2010.
|
| Summary/Abstract |
In comparison with their impacts elsewhere, humans have trodden relatively lightly on Mongolia's ecosystems and there is an opportunity to conserve globally threatened wild species and maintain natural ecological processes in parallel with modern economic development, but only if co-ordinated action is taken soon. Mongolia has a low population density (ca 1.68 per km2) and the pastoral lifestyle is suited to the landscape. Yet humans have degraded grasslands, damaged forests, depleted wildlife populations and polluted and overused water. Rapid social and political changes have resulted in far-reaching impacts on Mongolia's fragile ecosystems. The country is a major recipient of both foreign aid and foreign direct investment, and it is important to guide economic development with the best ecological judgment available before permanent damage is done. Government has a responsibility to establish a legal, policy and fiscal framework that provides incentives for sustainable use of the land compatible with the survival of Mongolia's wild species and ecosystems. A regional biodiversity conservation strategy for the Mongolian Altai examined direct and indirect threats and laid out a programme of actions under 12 major objectives.
|